Ford Lightning Has Muscle And Manners

''I'm in love with the Lightning,'' says Jackie Stewart. Not what you would expect, is it? A three-time World Driving Champion smitten with a truck? A big, burly, American sweat-and-toil pickup?

Maybe this isn't Stewart the ex-F1 pilote talking. Maybe this is Stewart the high-priced spokesman and consultant doing what he's being paid to do, hyping the second performance vehicle developed by Ford's Special Vehicle Team.

Then we drive the F-150 Lightning and fall in love with it ourselves.

Of course, that comes after a few circuits of the ride and handling course at Ford's Dearborn Proving Ground, with Stewart behind the wheel of this hot version of America's best-selling vehicle. Those laps are evidence that Stewart is indeed in the pilote mode, as we see the handling he can extract from this or any other vehicle is far greater than what we can achieve.

In the course of a half-dozen laps of the track, there are numerous times he eases on the gas, caresses the brakes, drops the column shift for the automatic down a gear. It's only the last that interrupts an otherwise seamless exhibition. The automatic can't shift as smoothly as Stewart can, recalling a similar ride we took with him four or five years ago on the same track in a Mustang GT.

The fact that anyone - even Stewart - can make an F-150 perform anywhere near the level of a Mustang GT is stunning. Yet that's exactly how Bob Burnham, Lightning project leader, sees his baby - as a Mustang GT with a pickup box.

We can't quite agree. It's a Mustang GT with manners and a pickup box. The Lightning rides far better than the Mustang GT does. As is the case with the SVT Cobra, its strong suit is balanced performance. And it delivers it with a smoothness that's almost unsettling.

We discover that for ourselves during our turn at the wheel. One does not expect a pickup to maintain its composure as it dashes around corners. But this one does. As we found with the Cobra, you can balance this vehicle's weight where you want, but because of its greater size and weight, the shift is somewhat more abrupt, somewhat less graceful. But remember, that's compared to a car. Compared to a truck - especially some competing harshly suspended performance pickups - the Lightning is like riding on silken rails.

But only up to a point. Raise the speed and approach the Lightning's handling limit in a turn and it begins to plow. But you can use the throttle to steer out of it, even at some fairly high speeds. That's unusual in an unloaded pickup, since typically the rear end tends to hop, especially on imperfect surfaces. More circuits reveal a hiccup in the Lightning's demeanor. The automatic transmission is a bit sensitive and can take it upon itself to shift when you might not want it to, slightly upsetting the handling balance.

Later in the day we learn this is less of a problem on real-world roads, where the big problem is the automatic engagement of our mental governor as we approach a turn at speed. At first we back off the throttle - even brake - for relatively mild changes of direction. Our instinct and experience tell us we're driving a pickup and its high center of gravity, size, unladen rear end and weight will result in us occupying the center of a large ball of scrap should we maintain our pace.

Burnham assures us the Lightning is up to the task, and so we attack the next corner and find he's right. Soon, we're charging along the back roads of southeastern Michigan with the same assertiveness we displayed on the handling course.

This leads to a few more discoveries.

First, the Lightning really could use a dead pedal to brace against while cornering. (It probably will never get one because it has a foot-operated parking brake that a dead pedal would lie directly beneath.)

Second, the driver's seat offers a fair bit of support to right-handers. But that's not true for left-handers. Thanks to the Lightning's cornering prowess, a driver can find himself leaning away from and hanging on to the steering wheel.

The changes made to the short-wheelbase standard-cab F-150 that result in such outstanding handling ability start with a good foundation. The Lightning rides on 275/60HR Firestone Firehawk GTAs that wrap around cast alloy 17-inch wheels. The power-steering gear has been revised to allow for greater feel. Both anti-roll bars are larger over stock, and gas shocks and heavy-duty front springs work with a front end lowered by an inch and a rear dropped more than 2 inches.

Power comes from a modified 5.8-liter V-8. Tweaks such as a tuned-length upper intake manifold and GT40 heads bring an extra 20 to 25 horsepower into play over the standard engine. As noted, the Lightning gets a four-speed automatic transmission, specially calibrated to handle the extra power that it sends down a heavy-duty aluminum drive shaft to the limited-slip differential. Burnham figures 0 to 60 mph times of about 7.5 seconds. Top speed is limited to 110 mph by a fuel cutout chip in the engine computer.

Once Lightning strikes the market early next year, SVT expects to sell 10,000 units annually through specially selected dealers. That seems like a lot, but then, says Stewart gleefully, it should command but a $2,500 premium over a like-equipped F-150 XLT.

Obviously the Lightning appeals to him when he's in his thrifty Scot mode, too.